David Farrance is the Daily Messenger's Hockey Player of the Year

Hockey fans who saw David Farrance play for Victor this past winter may have been surprised by two things when they looked at the team roster: He's only a freshman, and he's a defenseman.

Farrance was usually the best player on the ice, a rarity for freshman hockey players, and spent a ton of time with the puck outside of his team's defensive zone. The young defenseman finished with 33 goals and 13 assists and helped the Blue Devils reach the Section 5 Class B championship game. Farrance is the Daily Messenger's 2013-14 Hockey Player of the Year.

During the winter, Farrance also plays for the Syracuse Nationals, a AAA under-16 team. His friends on the Victor varsity team convinced him to try out for the school team this season.

“In eighth grade, I watched them and it was really cool, they looked like they had so much fun,” Farrance said. “I thought why not be a part of that? It would be awesome.”

Mike Ferreri, who just wrapped up his 11th year of coaching the Blue Devils, knew of the freshman's skill level and was excited to get him on the team. The coach said it was clear Farrance was the most talented player on the ice from day one.

The Blue Devils have given freshmen significant ice time in the past, but Ferreri noted, “They weren't doing the things David did — he's a special player.”

During the regular season, Farrance recorded 31 goals and 11 assists in just 17 games played. That ranked him ninth overall in Section 5 for points and second for goals scored. He had the most points of any defenseman. The freshman finished with five hat tricks and 15 multi-point games.

He found the atmosphere at Victor games to be much different than his Syracuse games.

“There's not many people at Syracuse games besides parents and people who want to watch,” Farrance said. “At Victor games, the whole school is there and the other team's whole school is there. It's something else playing out there.”

His favorite goal was the game-winner with one-second left in a 3-2 win over Webster Thomas on Victor's home ice at Thomas Creek Ice Arena.

The defenseman joined the rush as often as he could and showed the ability to stickhandle his way by two or three defenders at any time.

“He's a great skater, he can make a lot of defenseman look pretty foolish,” Ferreri said. “He's able to transition well, he can find the net well and he can pick corners very well especially in tight situations. He also knows the game really well, he can see things before they happen.”

Farrance credited his defensive partner, senior RJ Miller, with allowing him to play so aggressively and setting him up for scoring opportunities. Miller recorded a team-high 26 assists on the year, a single-season record at Victor. Farrance's 33 goals and 46 points were both single-season records.

Ferreri felt Farrance's addition raised the team's level of play and his practice habits influenced other Blue Devils to practice harder.

The freshman's strong play continued in sectionals with two goals and two assists in Victor's four games, including a game-winning goal on a breakaway in a 2-0 win over Penfield in the semifinals. The Blue Devils ultimately lost to Webster Schroeder, who went to win a state championship.

“As a team we worked together really well,” Farrance said. “Honestly, it's not what we wanted in the end, but we did play a really good season.”

Coaches selected Farrance as the Section 5 Division 2 East Player of the Year. The New York State High School Hockey Coaches Association named him to the all-state first team for Division 2, making him the first in Victor history to be on the first team.

The son of David and Pam Farrance's favorite subject in school is science. He also plays golf and baseball.

Farrance, whose favorite players are Sidney Crosby and Drew Doughty, said he hasn't looked too far into what he'll do after high school. However, the defenseman said he had a meeting with a scout from the USA Hockey National Team Development Program's under-17 team, and they want him to try out after his sophomore year.